I have to agree with Murray’s point about Karlovic. Isner seems to have a better game than Karlovic to me - should make for a good match!

Federer has recently played Karlovic so he has seen a lot of those types of big serves that Isner will be tossing at him - so that could be to Isner’s disadvantage.

I’m hyped for Murray’s slow-but-sure return to form - I hope he can get through the next round, and maybe even further. Be nice to see one Brit “replace” another in the same tourney - kind of like a passing of the torch or something poignant like that.

[…] Check out the full story… […]

2007-08-30
AKA Maverick
Murray is a very good player and will take over where Henman left. Murray is hard working, resilient and has good work ethics. If Murray could contain himself emotionally, which I think he will, with time and experience, he will do better than Tim Henman

why does it seem that whenever a match against federer gets hyped as a big challenge or potential upset, it usually ends up being rather routine? some of the best matches tend to come when you least expect them, so just let it be…is it really necessary to ask every player in the draw what they think about the match-up between federer and every young american?

agree with paula
Fish-Robredo, Tips-Nadal, Williams-Vera, are also subject to be very tight match
anyone wanna give some comments?

What about Djok vs Stepanek, or Berdych vs Verdasco? I am anticipating some highly competitive matches there.

I hope Fish and Nadal come through those - and anyone but the William’s sisters because I find them to be drama queens, but admittedly that’s just a personal opinion not necessarily to do with their tennis.

That Blake vs Santoro is also worth a hindsight mention - I knew it could be good with J Block action and crazy Santoro. But what a rollercoaster. I am happy Blake came through, for one because the gamesmanship in the 5th set and for another because he’s finally pulled out a 5 setter by staying focused in those nutball conditions.

Paula’s right in that the exciting matches often happen under the radar - though not always.

Blake’s post-match interview shows how much of a gentleman he is - he wins then he gets a very tough question asked right after winning it - what he thought about Santoro’s time out in the 5th set. I was surprised how he managed to find diplomatic words after that!

As I thought - Stepanek is aleady giving Djok a run for his money. He could have the upset here, having taken one set, but we’ll see.

Jane, do you like this article, http://www.suntimes.com/sports/couch/536495,CST-SPT-greg31.article?

It’s very American. Wow, the guy must hate Federer!

Dancevic Fan - Thanks for the link.

The article is very pro-Federer and anti-American to me. It basically says that Federer is perfect on court and off but that Americans don’t appreciate him because he’s not flashy, trashy, or whatever. He criticizing people for not liking Federer - not surprising, very typical.

Anyhow - back to this enthralling Djok/Step match.

Anyone -
What’s this tourney? Seems like someone is cramping or retiring or sick or hobbled every other match!

If Step makes it through this Djok match, which is looking v.possible - and here’s another serve/volleyer - I like his chances.

AKA Maverick
Yes, there are several very good player who deserve better media coverage, the likes of Bredych, Rombredo, Verdasco, Stepanek,Youzhny etc

As you all know Stepanek was number 8th ranking prior to injury. His return is good for tennis. He will soon return to with the first 10-15 ranking.

The match between Blake and Santoro was awesome. Had Santoro not gotten cramps, he probably would have won

The match between Stepanek and Djokovic was rated to be a match which will be very hard fought. I am not watching this match but I am sure both players are fighting very hard.
In all I do give the edge to Djokovic. Having said that, both these players have something to prove. Djokovic wants to protect his status in the ranking and Stepanek wants to get back to ranking. Good to have players who would not give an inch. Good luck to both

Apparently the humidity can increase cramping and its humid there

AKA Maverick,

Indeed good luck to both.

But the edge is on Stepanek’s side now - Djok is cramping and is down two sets to one. So…it’s smelling like an upset. Personally I like both these guy’s games. Right now it looks like Stepanek - playing with a broken heart? - has more desire.

Dancevic Fan -

Yeah - and one of the commentators mentioned nerves can cause the cramping too.

And since this blog topic is about “hype,” it’s worth mentioning that in addition to the humidity, I think Djok’s feeling too much pressure.

Courier makes a very good point that he’s been hyped too soon and this has put too much pressure on him. I’ve been guilty of hyping him myself because he has obviously got game and played so well in Canada. But he’s only just broken through this year so to expect him to get through his super tough draw is maybe a bit much.

Perhaps because Roger and Rafa have dominated so long it’s easy to get excited about anyone new in the mix.

True - they did say that they can’t put him in the same class as Fed & Rafa until he hoists a major trophy - excellent point - and they even pointed out another great fact about Goran Ivanisovic taking forever to win a major even though he was highly regarded from a very young age too.

2007-08-31
AKA Maverick
Reasons why I think Djokovic has an edge over Stepanek are:
1 Djokovic has many a times played long, strenuous, hard fought matches. He will fight till the last point.
2. By playing games of five sets, of the sort, I mention above he has become mentally strong, resilient and emotionally mature.
Stepanek’s disadvantage is, he has been out of professional tennis for a year. He physically looked very good when he last played Federer but I wonder, can Stepnek, mentally and emotionally, stay the course, should this match go to five sets. It will be a long drawn match
I wish I had the time to watch this match

AKA Maverick,

You’re right about Djok’s fighting spirit, but today he looks a little weary. The commentators just mentioned that the wind is picking up a little bit, which may help Djok.

Step doesn’t look weary so far, but he has been choking occasionally on some of the “bigger” points, so maybe that’ll be a factor.

We’ll see!

AKA Maverick -

Well! Wow! You called it.

5th set tiebreak to - but whoever won this match, this is why tennis is so fun to watch!! Brilliantly fought matches like this with unbelievable points and shot-making. Also like the Blake vs Santoro match.

Fantastic.

2007-08-31

AKA Maverick

I wonder if we could enter into discussion on the tie break concept. To me it is unfair. In a tie break, a set or a match could go either way. Tie break does not provide a fair chance to the better player but does provide a chance for a weaker player to return into the game or, match or, even win the game or, match. I think that tie breaks should be abolished and the sets be played on points or, atleast the last set be played on points. Provide me with your thoughts. Thanks. Have a good day

AKA Maverick -

Personally, I like the tiebreak; today, for instance, both Djok and Step were pretty well spent, after nearly 5 hours on court, so it would seem sadistic to make them play on-and-on.

But I agree, it does seem unbalanced sometimes when a match can turn on one or two shots in a tiebreak. Still, overall, I think it is a fair and good system.

I was not impressed today by what I saw from Isner … just a guy on stilts that can serve. He’s got alot of work to become a tennis player. Maybe they should move the net a foot higher during Karlovic and Isners service games to keep tennis the way it was meant to be … a game of skill and beauty.
… unfortunate for Dancevic that Safin showed up to play in the opening match … I think he would have been through the quarter finals if he had met almost anyone else in his quarter of the draw… oh, well there is always next year.

I predict a Federer - Djokovic final … a close match with the odd’s favouring Federer in four.

ha ha ha .. jane and Shital green. Like your optimism.

First of all.. Djok doesnt know how to win easy matches.. he likes to stretch it long and exhaust himself and then retire the next match. Even if he was 75% on..he was made to look like that by Stepanek. Once he goes into a rally, he doesnt try to finish the point fast, rather tries to go toe-to-toe like Hewitt, expecting and unforced error. No wonder he gets exhausted so often.

The ONLY win he has against Fed is where he won less points than Federer where he was 110% and Fed was 75%. If both of then play their A game, Fed will take him down in straight sets. And with the way Djok plays his earlier rounds, he would be 60% rather than 100% by the time he reaches the finals.

Tejuz -

Following your lead, I’ll post this reply on this thread, too; there is something wrong with the view on the other link - print off to one side.
—————————————————-

Did you see Djok play in Montreal? He didn’t lose ONE SET until he met Roger in the finals; you might look as well at his French Open results this year - he sailed through most of those matches in straight sets too.

“He likes to stretch it long and exhaust himself” -?

First of all, WHY on earth would any player “like” to stretch it long and/or “exhaust himself”? That’s a pretty silly claim to make. And second, unless you know him personally, how would you know what Djok “likes”?

Djok’s recent long matches have been against very talented and/or determined players (Hewitt, Baggy, Stepanek - all top ten quality). Moreover, he tends to have rather difficult draws, in case you hadn’t noticed. (Everybody and their dog has commented that his quarter of the draw is the most difficult this year at the open, and it wasn’t easy at Wimbledon either.)

Your man Federer, on the other hand, hasn’t played anyone ranked higher than 120 thus far in this tournament. Perhaps that’s why he hasn’t been in any long matches, although, come to think of it, he did lose a set to a rookie today.

Our optimism for Djok’s future is in my opinion justifiable and valid - most tennis pundits agree. He may not win this particular slam but he’ll win them in the future.

Here is my hope: If Djoko beats Del Potro without having to spend much energy, he can make it to the final. He does not have to hoist a slam to be compared his level of play with No. 1 and No. 2, as he will be closing gap with Nadal by every day (he is within striking distance), and he has already given us enough this year to compare his level of play with the best two in the tour.
For now I just wish for his quick recovery and hope he will eliminate Courier’s holding back by the sort of display we saw at Montreal.

Shital Green -

I “hope” so too. And I agree that Djok doesn’t have to hoist a trophy to be compared to 1 and 2. Not only do I want him to recover quickly, but would like to see Rafa in great form too, as he’s one of my favorites. Tsonga is a talented player though.

Nice to see Rafa in good form today - still a contender for final as he’s now rolling through Tsonga after a 1st tight set.

It’s extremely possible we’ll be seeing a THIRD Rafa vs. Djok semi at THIRD slam in a row.

Shital Green -

So far it looks like we’ll get our wish for Djok’s speedy recovery. First two sets against Del Potro were seemingly quite easy and Djok currently up a break in the third. Hurray!

Djok is only capable of causing an upset against Fed or Nadal on their off-days when hez playing his best. If his level of play has to be compared to Fed or Nadal, he has to go past the semis of Slams and win them or atleast be in a finals … and that too consistently other wise he is worse off than Roddick or Baggy or Gonzalez or Hewitt( they have all won slams or atleast been to finals)… similar to Devydenko and probably little better than Blake cuz Blake hasnt really go past QFs of a slam.

http://bestbay.info/2008/91321.html